Chapter 135 Iron Kan Temple
Jia She and the others came forward to chat for a while, and Niu Jizong said, "I have to return to the camp later, so I can't go with you to offer sacrifices. Please forgive me."
"Uncle, state affairs are the most important. Now that you are in charge of the camp, you cannot neglect them. Your Majesty has allowed you to come, and the whole family is grateful. If state affairs are delayed, it will be the fault of the Jia family. After the matter is settled, I will thank you in the palace."
Niu Jizong nodded. In fact, although he and Jia Jing were of the same generation, they were not close. He looked down on Jia Zhen and his father. The reason why he came in person was because of Jia Cong's face.
He even thought that the death of these gentlemen was a great thing. Jia Cong would be able to take charge of the East Palace and have a higher status. Most of the Eight Dukes and Twelve Marquises would probably be happy to see this happen.
After passing the sacrificial shed of the Duke Zhenguo's Mansion, the sacrificial shed of the Duke Shanguo's Mansion was not far ahead. Shi Guangzhu not only came here in person, but also burned more paper and offered more sacrifices than those of the Duke Zhenguo's Mansion. It was obvious that he had spent a lot of money. Moreover, the only legitimate son Shi Rao personally brought his family servants to attend the funeral.
The Shanguo Mansion missed the border defense and the friendship with Jia Cong, the newly promoted Earl. However, Jia Cong did not leave the Shi family behind in terms of business. Therefore, compared with other mansions, the Shi family tried their best to strengthen the relationship with Jia Cong. If the timing was not wrong, he would have wanted to put his legitimate son under Jia Cong.
In this way, the eight dukes and twelve marquises came one after another! The eight dukes' mansions all sent their sons to attend the funeral, and in the twelve marquis' mansions, many heads of the families directly helped with the funeral. Obviously, with the rise of Jia Cong, the Ning and Rong mansions gradually became the core of the eight dukes and twelve marquises again.
It was not until after noon that the huge team left the city.
This grand occasion made Jia Zheng sigh that the Jia family was prosperous again. Jia Cong smiled speechlessly. Regardless of whether it was prosperous or not, this funeral directly spent all the money of the East Palace.
The money in the East Palace Treasury was only a few hundred thousand taels, which would be a lot for an ordinary family, but the 49 days of the funeral was definitely more than a waste of money. Not to mention the purchase of various items, the daily food, clothing, incense, candles, and offerings for the one or two hundred monks in the family were also a considerable amount.
Not only did more than 100,000 taels of silver get spent, Jia Cong even had to take out another 30,000 or 40,000 taels of his own money to make up for the shortfall, which allowed him to hold on.
If I continue to spend, I'm afraid I'll have to go borrow money from my rich wife...
Moreover, the funeral expenses of each mansion today are at least tens of thousands of taels. When something happens in other people's families in the future, he will naturally have to spend corresponding money.
However, Jia Cong was not too worried. After this matter was settled, he would open a ancestral hall and be adopted into the East Palace.
There were few useful servants in the East Palace. If we find a reason to deal with them, we will naturally get a large sum of money back.
It was almost common knowledge that the housekeepers of the two mansions were corrupt and had taken bribes. Jia Cong suspected that these things were the money bags that Jia's mother had left for future generations. After all, they were all family children who had been indentured to death, and their lives and deaths were controlled by their masters. If the two mansions really reached a point where they could no longer survive, even if it was not pleasant to confiscate the servants' homes, at least they could recover the money.
Otherwise, it is absolutely impossible to say that Grandmother Jia didn't know about these things. And with Grandmother Jia's means, even if it was to leave those old people with dignity, there were countless ways to get things done...
After leaving the city, Jia Cong looked at Jia She and Jia Zheng who were on the verge of collapse and said, "Father, second uncle, we are out of the city now and there is nothing else to do. You can get on the carriage and take a rest! I sent someone to send a message to our family's farm in advance, asking them to prepare tea and snacks. Father and second uncle should also eat a little later. Don't overwork yourself."
The two were really tired, so they didn't force themselves. They nodded and dismounted from their horses, waiting for the carriage to arrive.
Baoyu, who was sitting behind, was also happy. Although the horse he was riding was docile, his butt was sore from riding it. How could it be as comfortable as riding in a carriage?
However, Jia Zheng turned around and said, "Lian'er, Baoyu, you stay with Cong'er outside to support him!"
Upon hearing this, Baoyu could not help but continue riding on his horse with a sad face.
Youshi and Keqing each had their own carriages. Keqing opened the window a little and looked out. She happened to see Jia Cong riding his horse and rushing back and forth. Her eyes immediately showed ripples!
During these days, Jia Cong would go to her room every three to five days. Although the two of them did not accomplish anything positive, they were always affectionate.
She had actually made up her mind to give herself to Jia Cong completely, but Jia Cong obviously took her feelings into consideration and did not force her to do anything during this period. This naturally made Keqing feel happier and more at ease. This enemy was not just attracted by her looks...
"Oh, my grandma, you don't want to laugh right now! Baozhu, quickly get the ginger juice so I can apply it on grandma..."
So, Keqing burst into tears again...
In the afternoon, we finally arrived at Tiekan Temple! This Tiekan Temple was originally the ancestral temple of the Jia family, and the abbot's name was Sekong!
Sekong, who had received the news long ago, had already asked people to prepare all the necessary things, and took the monks to receive the spirit outside the temple gate! When all the coffins were brought in, the monks set up an altar and performed rituals. Wang Xifeng asked the maids and servants to escort the women to the back room first, while Jia Cong supported Jia She and Jia Zheng on both sides to go to the front to entertain others.
After everyone had burned incense, most of the descendants of the eight dukes and twelve marquises left, and only blood relatives like the Shi family and the Wang family stayed behind.
There will be a three-day ritual next, so Jia Cong and others still need to support them in Tiekan Temple.
However, after the ritual, the body still needs to be kept in Tiekan Temple for ninety days before being sent back to Nanjing for burial! However, the family members don’t need to stay here for these ninety days, they just need to send people to burn incense from time to time.
After sending most of the guests away, Jia Cong quickly asked people to find a room for Jia She and Jia Zheng to rest. If one or two more of them left, he would have nothing else to do...
"Father, Second Uncle, we still need to stay here for three days. It's fine for the men to rest here, but it will be a little inconvenient for the women!"
"Our Shuiyue Temple is not far away. I have asked people to clean up the house in advance. Why don't you let the two wives take the female relatives to Shuiyue Temple to rest? I will send someone to pick them up every morning. In addition, Second Brother Bao is weak and can't stand being busy all day. He should also go there to rest. Otherwise, it will be bad if he gets sick."
Jia She nodded indifferently, but Jia Zheng was a little hesitant. After all, it would be inappropriate for his own son to go if other people's women went there.
